


Doesn't This Have a Name? (And Isn’t it Love?)

by Laslus



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: Ben is just in love with everybody. smol bisexual polyamorous mess., First Kiss, Fluff, Light Angst, Multi, Past Relationship(s), Polyam is the norm at the Isle and you cant change my mind, Polyamorous Character, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, United States of Auradon (Disney) Is Not Perfect
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-23
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 16:13:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22370020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laslus/pseuds/Laslus
Summary: Ben discovers True Love might be a little more complicated than what his parents taught him.  He likes it better that way
Relationships: Ben/Carlos de Vil, Ben/Evie/Gil/Harry Hook/Jay/Mal/Uma/Carlos de Vil, Ben/Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos de Vil, Ben/Evie/Mal (Disney: Descendants), Ben/Harry Hook, Ben/Jay (Disney: Descendants), Ben/Uma (Disney: Descendants), Evie/Jay/Mal/Carlos de Vil, Gil/Jay (Disney: Descendants), Mal/Uma (Disney)
Comments: 79
Kudos: 310





	1. Prologue (Doesn't this have a name?)

**Author's Note:**

> So. I recently watched the three movies in one night with my friends and I couldn't stop shipping everyone with everyone. Its not my fault Ben had chemestry with every single character he talks to. 
> 
> This is a little harry/uma centric, but not by much! I'm curently writting the last two chapters, so I must finish it soon enough. Maybe post a chapter a week. 
> 
> tittle based on a Steven Universe song I cant get out of my head
> 
> Anyways i hope you enjoy this!

“I thought you’d be the first in the water” said Ben, sitting by Uma’s side on the lake shore.

After Mal lifted the wall around the Isle, all they had done was work. Ben and Mal were doing politics, Evie was both working on her brand and helping Carlos taking care of the kids on her castle and Jay and Gil were on the hard job of actually keeping them in line. Harry was helping with that too, even if he didn’t quite still understood what _in line_ meant.

Uma at first stood next to her two pirates, but she was slowly getting more and more involved with the politics along with Ben. Turned out she actually was _good_ at that – the old members of Auradon board were very much alike the old villains she had to deal with in the Isle. They wouldn't threaten to rip her throat, but their sarcasm meant the same thing and so did hers.

At first, Mal didn’t like this. She didn’t hate Uma anymore, was still distrusting of her. As the weeks rolled, however, Mal realized that having her doing politics meant _she_ didn’t had to follow Ben in all those insufferable press conferences and reunions and could focus her resources on helping Evie with community building and Queen-only meetings. Funny enough, Hades was helping with community, and Mal could appreciate having time to spend with her dad.

After two months, they were all going crazy. Ben had fallen asleep with his head on Evie’s lap on a late night as they were doing the finances of the kingdom together when she decided they all needed a time out. Hence, the picnic and swimming time over the enchanted lake.

“I like the sea better” Said Uma, moving her feet inside the water. She paused for a second, eyes wondering to Harry and Gil, who were doing a _chicke_ _n fight_ with Jay and Carlos. “Besides, I like having an excuse to watch them.”

Ben didn’t have to follow her gaze to know where (or better, to whom) she was looking. Instead, his eyes trailed to Carlos smile as he tried to balance himself over Jay’s shoulders.

* * *

He found out about Uma, Harry and Gil on accident. He had been on meeting the whole day and Uma had promised to meet him during dinner so they could discuss yesterday board’s decision, but she hadn’t shown. He didn’t think much about it, but decided safe was better than sorry, so there Ben was, knocking on her door in the middle of the night.

It took a while for her to answer, but he could hear movement inside and honestly was feeling a little bit silly. She just forgot. It was _fine_. She had friends over and it was none of his business. He should just…

But she opened the door.

“Ben! I completely forgot!” she said, but he wasn’t quite listening.

Uma was using nothing but a oversized white shirt, hanging half opened. He tried not to stare at her legs exposed, or the curve of her breast, but she did took his breath away anyways and all he could think was _shit, not again_. The second thing he thought was that he recognized that shirt – it was obviously Harry’s. Which, you know, meant he was interrupting _something_.

“I...” he stuttered, his face warming up “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you… I just got worried.”

“Ben?” He heard a voice inside. Looking from over her shoulder he could see Gil sitting on her bed, smiling at him in nothing but his underwear, obviously not worried about indecency. Harry was right behind him, chest exposed, but with legs hidden under the covers.

Ben frowned. “Gil? What are you…”

Uma saved him from himself. “Do you want to come in? We can talk about the board now. Gil was feeling weird and Harry and I came over. I must’ve slept.”

Ben blinked. “You were… obviously occupied.” He glanced at the boys on her bed again and was unable to keep words in “I’m sorry, what’s going on here?”

Uma frowned. “What do you mean? Look, get inside, you will wake up the neighbors and Celia is _insufferable_ when she can’t sleep.”

Ben didn’t feel comfortable to enter her room _at all_ , but he stepped inside anyways. He didn’t know where to look: the three of them were all half naked and this was not the time for him to remember how _beautiful_ they all were.

“Why are you looking like this?” Asked Harry, and Ben had to focus very hard not to let his eyes wonder “I couldn’t make you stiff like this when I had my hook under your neck. You look like you’re about to boak _.”_

“I’m… confused?”

“About what?” Asked Uma, crooking her head.

“About… what I interrupted. I know it’s none of my business.”

“You just woke us up, it’s fine little king.”

Gil nodded “It was good, we didn’t had dinner and I’m getting hungry. You want to join us?”

“I promise I’ll put some pants, if that’s what got you worried.” laughed Uma.

Ben was still about 5 miles behind that conversation. “Do you usually sleep like this?”

“Naked?” Uma was clearly confused

“Together.”

The three of them were still a little confused, staring at him as if he was the one naked with three people on his bed. “Don’t Auradon people sleep together? I thought you’d all about cuddle and shit.”

“Yes, but, uh, only if they are dating.”

The three of them _finally_ blushed, but it wasn’t what he was expecting. There wasn’t shame, not in the way they looked at each other. It was so _rare_ to see insecurities sleeping up on Harry and Uma that it took him a whole second to recognize.

“I… I guess we are?” The way Gil said it was more of a question, his emotions always on his sleeve.

_Oh._

“Yeah. I mean,” Uma was good at faking it, but Ben melted a little with the way her voice failed a little “I guess you people would call it dating.”

“The three of you?” he asked, but it was a stupid question. It made _sense_. Ben might’ve grew up with the _perfect two_ idea, but the way Uma, Harry and Gil worked around each other? He couldn’t imagine two without the third.

“Hold on **”** Said Harry’s voice “You guys only date in two, right?”

“Yes.” Ben said, but he thought it sounded too rude. “I mean, you guys can date, I think it makes sense. But, uh, it’s not how its usually done.”

“We are not your usual princess meet prince anyways” laughed Uma

He left after that. The way the air had changed was a clear sigh they wanted to talk and, being honest to himself, Ben had some thinking to do. The board meeting could wait a little.

* * *

“How did you know you loved them both?” asked Ben

Uma frowned, looking at the king as if he was crazy “How did you knew you loved Mal?” she shot back.

Ben laughed, leaning back on his hands. His face turned back to Mal as she and Evie raced clumsily to the other shore. He deserved that answer, but he had a good reason to be asking it. Instead of saying anything, he stared at Jay and Carlos again, how their laughs echoed around the lake and how their hands lingered a little longer as Carlos was knocked back by Gil.

“What’s on your mind, little king?” Uma frowned, leaning back so she could look at him.

Ben blushed, turning his face away, but unable to contain his smile. He always enjoyed having Uma around – from the first time they met, with him tied to her ship, to the small and absolutely boring meetings they did together. Their hands were almost touching, he could feel the warm. Maybe he should just _lie_ , maybe he was just _that bad_ at drawing the line on friendship. As he considered lying, Uma was still staring at him. Each of the VK’s had own ways to hide their feelings and he was still learning his way to read them, but he was always _good_ with Uma: she was worried about him. And he might hang with the villain's kids, but he was _stupidly_ a prince charming.

“I have… I have been feeling things I can’t quite understand lately.” His voice lowered by a few notches, enough for him to move his head closer to hers. It was an honest mistake, but being closer to her meant his eyes could wander clandestinely to her mouth. It wasn’t subtle, but she didn’t back away. His insides turned inside him as he added “About other people”.

“ _Oh_.” she answer in a whisper, her words against his lips before she smirked “I would have to ask Harry and Gil first.”

His stomach flipped again, harder his time, and he finally pulled back, his face burning hot. “ _Oh_ I…” Was that a _yes_? Did that mean Uma wanted to kiss him too? “It was first about Evie, then Jay and Carlos followed, but…” He stopped for a second, fighting against his embarrassment “Yeah, you too. And Harry. Maybe Gil too.”

Uma laughed at that, but he knew her enough to read her voice and knew that she was embarrassed too. “Who knew King Ben, the golden face of Auradon, would learn how to love in the way of the Isle.”

Ben crooked his head, taking up the courage to meet her eyes again. Her smile was a smirk, proud and mischievous at the same time, but her eyes were almost worried, as if he would turn her down at any second. Sometimes she remind him so much of Mal it ached, both so terrified of failure.

“Is this usual at the Isle? Liking more people, I mean.”

“Oh, yeah, we don’t do the _true love_ shit.” she said _true_ _love_ with mockery, but her treachery eyes stole a glance back at her boys

“Or you found another way to do it.” Answered Ben, “Maybe this is just another thing I have to learn from you guys.”

She eyed him, studying his face and this time he didn’t turn away. He stared her back, lips slightly parted. “You really do mean it, don’t you? You _do_ like all of us.”

“Yes. It’s eating me inside out.” He ran his hands on his hair. He could hear his friends laughing, making his heart melt and his anxiety levels rise. “I don’t know what to _do_ with this.”

“You need to talk to that little queen of yours first.”

“I _know_. I meant to, but… She was always waiting for me to stop loving her, for me to notice she wasn’t good enough. I love her so much, I don’t want her to think she isn’t enough.”

“That’s fairy-tale bullshit. No one is _enough_ , we aren’t made to belong to anyone else. We fit together and we chose to fight to be together. Mal will understand that.”

Ben took a deep breath. It made sense, he knew that.

“Has she ever… Mal never talked about any past relationships, has she dated more than one before?”

Uma laughed. “I always thought her little gang was like ours. You know. Together.” She said, and something dropped on Ben. “Maybe I was wrong.”

Maybe.

“When did you...” He chose his words very carefully “When did you first told you loved them?”

Uma blushed. It was a rare sight and his insides turned all over again. He wanted to make her blush everyday. “Last week. After you saw us and made all of those stupid questions.”

“So maybe… Maybe they _were_ all together back at the Isle, they just didn’t thought it was the real thing. You said it yourself, you don’t do _true love_.”

Uma hesitated. She never hesitated. “Do you really thing this could be true love?” her voice was low, lower than when Ben had admitted to liking her. “this _dating more than one_ _person_ thing?”

There was so much in between the words of her question it hit Ben right across the face. He wanted to kiss those lingering questions away.

“Yes.”

She stared at him, their hands were still almost touching and their faces were close again, so close he could feel her breath against his lips.

“Go talk to your queen so I can know if I can kiss your stupid face.” She answered, a smirk showing on her lips as she punched his arm softly. “Maybe hers as well, if I can push my luck.”

He lifted his eyebrows, a smile growing on his lips and poked her on her sides.

“What are you two still doing dry?” asked Mal, swimming towards them.

Her smile was lighter than he’d seen in months and it took his breath away without every trying. She was still bad at swimming (they all were), but she was getting better, reaching for Ben to pull him inside.

He glanced at Uma again before taking his shirt over his head and jumping by Mal’s side. She screamed as he pulled her into a hug, much more skilled swimmer than she was, and kissing her. She kissed him back, and he could taste her smile on his lips and he felt so _big_.

“I love you.” he said as they broke apart

“I know, silly, I love you too” She said, a little confused, before turning to Uma, “Are you digging the whole _lonely_ thing or are you joining us too?”

Mal had that look on her face that would make Ben give her the world. Uma was apparently affect by it too, rolling her eyes, but slipped into the water anyways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can scream at me about descendents at las-lus.tumblr.com
> 
> please leave a comment and a kudo bellow <3 its apreciated! next chapter is already written and should be up by sunday
> 
> edit: 14/07 I corrected a few typos


	2. Mal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Thank you so much for the kudos and reviews so far <3 here is chapter two, i should post chapter three by friday!
> 
> There's a conversation where is implied that those characters have sex (they are already overage in this), but it will not be make explicit in any way. I just thought maybe you would want to know.
> 
> enjoy!

When they first started dating, Mal used to climb his window at night so they could sleep together. She didn’t need to, nowadays, both because they weren’t at school anymore and because they were _engaged_ , it was expected for them to be living together or something close to it. She still had her own room (two, actually, one in his the castle and one in Evie’s), but most nights she slept with him.

That night wasn’t any different, but maybe Ben wanted some time alone. Maybe. But more likely, he was just being a huge coward.

“Why are you this pale? We spent the whole _day_ at the sun” asked Mal, already in her pajamas. The ring on her right hand was bright even at the dim light of the room.

She never failed to steal his breath away.

“I love you”, he said

“Yeah I know, we are engaged, remember?” she lifted her ringed hand “Are you getting cold feet?”

It was a joke, light and with no real bite. He remembered when they first started dating and the first year that followed, how she was always afraid of doing something wrong, of Ben realizing somehow that she wasn’t good enough to be his queen. It made his stomach turn.

“No, Mal, of course not.” He wasn’t, he wanted to marry her more than he wanted anything in his life, but it still felt like a lie.

She frowned at him. “Hey, relax, I was just kidding, I love you too.”

“I know, it’s just… Did you know Uma, Gil and Harry are dating? The three of them, together, I mean.”

“Oh, you finally caught up” she laughed, sitting on the bed “Is this what’s got you all weird? I think they are good for each other, even if it’s not how _true love_ works and all that.”

Ben sat next to her. “Oh, that’s not my problem. I actually think they might have found true love in each other.”

“You do? Then what’s wrong?”

“I was talking to Uma today, by the lake, and she told me something that got me thinking.” He said carefully, rubbing the back of his neck “I’m not asking because I _mind_ , but I want to know. Did you use to date Evie, Carlos and Jay like that before you came here?”

Her pale face went red and she went stiff. “Ben I...”

“I told you, I don’t mind if you did, I’m just trying to pick some puzzle pieces here” _And dance around my actual question,_ he thought.

Mal hid her face on her hands for a while before answering. “I don’t… know? Look Ben, you have to understand in the Isle we didn’t think we had a shot at love. There was very little adult supervision and even less adult _support_ so we all were just doing what we could. We four, we… we had our own secret room and we slept there most of the nights. We kissed, _a lot_ , and we cuddle even more, but we never talked about it.”

Ben didn’t think he had it in him to be jealous (nor had the rights to), but he didn’t think it would hurt either. Maybe if had never gotten in the picture they would still be together.

“Did I broke you guys up?”

“What? No. When we arrived here we just… stopped. No kisses, no cuddles, no nothing.”

“Why?”

She shrugged. “I guess being here meant we finally _had_ our shot at true love, and that wasn’t it.”

“Wasn’t it?”

She blushed harder “What do you mean?”

“Did you loved them? Do you still love them?”

“I love _you_.” she said, but her face wasn’t turned to him.

He reached for her for the first time, grabbing one of her hand while touching her face softly. “I know you do, I love you too. I just… I love them too. Evie, Carlos and Jay.”

Her face snapped to look at him “You _what_?”

He blushed. “I’m… I’m sorry?”

“What do you mean with _I love them too_?”

He took a deep breath, his hand still touching hers. “I’ve been feeling like this for a while. At first I couldn’t put my finger on what I was feeling, and when I _could_ I had wished I didn’t. It’s not very well seen to want to kiss your girlfriend’s friends.”

“When were you going to tell me this?” she asked

He blushed furiously. “I was afraid of telling you. I love you _so much,_ I don’t want to hurt you. At first, I thought you wouldn’t understand. I mean, even _I_ didn’t. How could I love someone other than you? I’ve never heard before of loving more than one, let alone _four, five, six_.”

“six?” asked Mal, interrupting him.

He blushed again, avoiding her eyes. “I’m not in love yet. But… I’ve been having feelings again for Uma and Harry.”

“ _Damn_ Ben, you have the worse type I’ve ever seen.”

His shoulders felt lighter as he heard her joking. “I know, if a gang plans to put a love spell on me I _will_ fall in love all of them.”

She laughs at that. It’s a little broken, but he expected worse. “What do you want to do about that? Do you want to call off out engagement or...”

“Oh no, Mal, only if you want to.” He rushed “There’s nothing I want to do more than marry you.”

“Than what do you want to do?”

“What do _you_ want, Mal? We’re both in love with them, aren’t we?”

She hesitated, but she nodded “But is _there_ anything to do? We can’t just, I don’t know, all date.”

“Can’t we?”

“Ben, your father loves me, but he _would_ kill me. And then my father would kill yours, and hell’s know what the board would do.”

“They don’t have to know, I mean. We should do baby steps. What are we talking about here?”

“You’re the one who brought it up!” She hissed

“You’re the one with experience with this, you dated three people before!”

“Yeah, but we didn’t _talk_ about it.”

“So let’s talk about it. What’s out of limits?”

Mal crooked her head. “It’s only inside our group. Uma, Harry and Gil are in, but anyone else we _have_ to talk about it first.” She said, thoughtfully, before adding in a lighter tone “Also, this is already seven people, I think it’s physically impossible for you to love anyone else.”

He blushed a little. “Fair enough. Is anything off limits?”

She lifted a single eyebrow, smirking as he blushed harder “No, but have the decency to put a sock on the door.” She laughed a little, but added in a sober voice “But really, maybe we should let each other know when we won’t be sleeping together.”

“Sounds fair... Maybe we should talk to Evie first, she has Doug. Plus, she was the first I fell after you, I think it would feel right.”

“She was the first I ever fell, too” Mal said, so low it was almost impossible to listen, a smile slipping on her lips

“She is quite amazing.”

“She _is_.” She agreed, before shaking her head a little “You might want to talk to Uma too, she has her boys.”

“I… I kinda of already did. Today.”

“You told Uma you wanted to kiss her and her boyfriend?”

“Yes? I needed to vent about this to someone before having the courage to bring to you.”

“And you chose _her_?” Her voice was not annoyed as much as it was intrigued.

Ben crooked his head. “Of all people I thought she would understand. Besides, she would probably punch me in the face if she thought I would hurt you, and I kinda wanted that.”

She smiled. “What did she say?”

“That I should talk to you, and she was going to talk to Harry and Gil” His smile turned into a smirk “She also said she might push her luck with you.”

Mal snorted softly “I would’ve killed before admitting it, but think I had a crush on her when we were at the Isle. Nothing sexier than a good enemy to pin against a wall. Good to know it was mutual.”

“So you have a type too, hun?”

“Shut up.”

They both laughed, and it was a little weird to hear this in the open. To know they could even talk about this felt forbidden, like he was sharing a dirty secret to his best friend. He spoke the next words almost in a hush.

“So what do we do? Invite Evie for dinner and say _hey, I know you have a boyfriend, but we both want to kiss your face_?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pleeease don't forget to leave a comment if you're enjoying this! it means a lot
> 
> you can also follow me on tumblr at las-lus.tumblr.com


	3. Evie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is! Please let me know your thoughts, I hope you enjoy this

  
  


Ben and Mal invited Evie for a dinner on the next day. It was a private thing, on the royal kitchen, no guards, just something they both managed to cook on their own (which wasn’t much, considering they were both bad cookers). Any fears Ben had of this making things awkward between Mal and him were fading: as they cooked, they talked freely about their crushes, Mal most of all seemed almost lighter, as if the fear of loving her friends was dragging her down before.

Evie arrived late, hair messy and no makeup, asking a thousand different apologies as they walked her from the front door to the kitchen.

“Evie, it’s _fine_ ” Said mal, for what felt the hundred time “It’s just us.”

“ _Just_ the King and future Queen.” mocked Evie, sitting down at the table and putting her hair in a high ponytail.

“We also have another title, don’t know if you heard of it: your best friends” said Mal, sitting by her side.

Evie huffed. “It’s still rude to be late. I was in a meeting with Esmeralda. Carlos and I do _not_ have the time to deal with all those kids and school year is just about to start. She was willing to help, so I _couldn’t_ cut the meeting short. I’m sorry.”

Ben got up and walked so he was facing her back to give her a small massage. He could feel her melting a little under his hands. “Evie, you’re doing an amazing job with those kids, we don’t mind you being late, especially if its for a good cause.

“Thanks, Ben.” her voice failed a little as he pressed a tense spot on her back. She moved herself away from him. “Let’s eat, right?”

During dinner, Ben managed to pretend he _wasn’t_ a nervous wreck (and he knew Mal enough to know she was just as bad). Every time she laughed, or their eyes met, his insides would turn around, but besides that, it was _fine_. The three of them always fitted well with each other and it was somehow better now he knew Mal was too filled with pride as Evie explained her last dress idea.

“So, are you going to tell me what you’re hiding?” asked Evie during desert.

Ben chocked, looking up to see her smile behind her spoon of mousse.

“What do you mean?” asked Mal, slightly better at hiding her surprise.

Evie raised an eyebrow, setting the bowl down, her smirk was merciless. Evie fitted so well in Auradon Ben sometimes forget she was just as wicked as Mal or Uma when she wanted. “C’mon, I know you. You’ve been dancing around something every since I got here. Spill it.”

Ben and Mal shared looks, as if insisting the other went first. They both gave up at the same time, saying “Well...” and “I...” together.

“Oh boy, this might be worse than I expected” laughed Evie.

Ben blushed, looking at Mal. This was between the two girls, this was theirs way before it was his too. “You should go first.”

Mal took a deep breath, her face looking anywhere but to Evie “I love you.”

Evie frowned. “I love you too, silly, you know that.”

Mal laughed a little, eyes finally meeting hers “No, I mean, I’m in love with you. Have been since forever.”

She froze. The only sound was Ben swallowing dry.

“But… Ben.”

He took his queue. “Well, considering I’m in love with you too I’m not sure I have any grounds to complain.”

Evie’s face turned to look at him. Her wicked facade was gone, all that was left was terrified and confused looks. “You what?”

Ben was taken back “We both want to ask you out, but we are not a closed deal. I understand if you don’t feel the same way about me, but you clearly do about Mal. We want you in any way you want us.”

“We know you have Doug” rushed Mal “we don’t want to break you up, but if you...”

Ben hardly ever saw Evie being impulsive. The other VK’s were always doing something reckless, but she had always been the brains, the strategist. So seeing Evie close the distance between her and Mal and kissing her on the mouth had been a surprise. Clearly Mal wasn’t expecting it either, but wasn’t about to turn down the opportunity.

Ben thought about what it felt like to watch them kiss. He would be lying if he didn’t felt a sting of jealousy: they kissed like they’ve haven’t seen each other in years and he wasn’t sure he and Mal had ever kissed like that. But mostly, he was a mix of happiness, earning and something else, growing warmer on his insides. He didn’t know the name of that feeling, but he decided he very much liked it.

They broke apart eventually, and Evie immediately said “Doug knows.”

Mal frowned, their faces still close. “He does?”

“I told him about you. The four of us, I mean, back at the Isle” She blushed “And I told him I never got over any of you. He understood. We have this… agreement, that we could see other people, if we wanted. He is seeing a guy from work.”

“Oh. You are way ahead of us.” Mal whispered.

“I usually am.” Evie laughed, before getting up and around the table, stopping in front of Ben. “But I must say: I didn’t expect you to love me back.”

Ben melted, his heart stopped and than rushed all at once. “How could I not?”

He got up, eyes stuck on hers, itching to get closer, but waited for her to break their gap.

She did.

Ben thought a lot about kissing Eve. Most times he felt guilty about it, but it was unavoidable (as was failing in love with all of them). He remembered the meetings they had and the nights they stayed awake reading and re-reading new laws, how she would help him in physics and chemistry before graduation, how he would get a little lost on her smile as she solved a problem.

It was all of those feelings at once. Their kiss took a while to fit, with noses bumping and the wrong amount of tongue, but even as they failed he was feeling so much. If he had any doubts left about loving Evie, they all faded away: he wanted to kiss her like this everyday, if he had the chance.

“Stay over tonight.” Said Ben against her lips, before blushing furiously “I mean, not to… we don’t have to… Just to sleep.”

Mal laughed as Evie’s face grew redder too. “He is right, you should stay, I miss waking up by your side.”

“What will the guards say?” whispered Evie “You’re king and queen, if you too really want to…”

She didn’t finish the sentence, but Ben did “To date you. We want to date you, honestly, I’m a little in love with all of you. Jay and Carlos… Uma and Harry, too”

Evie lifted an eyebrow “You are? Gods, you’re worse than Mal.”

She laughed. “We want to figure it out together. We know we have to keep it quite, at least for now, but only if you’re ok with being kept a secret. We will find a way”

“Of course I’m ok. I wouldn’t want to lose all what we fought for over anything.”

“Than stay tonight. We will figure something out.” asked Mal, getting up and gently pulling Evie by the hand. Her other hand tangled on her blue hair, putting a lock of it behind her ear before leaning close and nibbling it. “Please”

Evie whimpered a little, and Ben couldn’t help but make a mental note about that soft spot. “You’re _wicked,_ Mal. I’d thought some time with Ben would’ve taught you better”

Mal laughed softly against her ear, whispering “I guess I was the one to teach him, want to see what we learned?”

She stayed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey! I dont want to be _that_ person, but not leaving a comment means I have no way of knowing if you read any chapter after the first one at all, so since you did read, could you leave a comment and let me know? You can say if you're enjoying this so far or leave a little heart, it really helps fanfic writters and makes our day!
> 
> thank you anyways <3 I should have the next chapter by next friday
> 
> you can follow me at las-lus.tumblr.com if you like ^^


	4. (Interlude)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the last comments! I will anwser all of them soon <3 
> 
> This is a little interlude before Ben asks anyone else out, but its still very cute (i think)
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Ben woke up the next morning with blue hair on his face. It only took him half a second to remember where he was, what had happened, and he gladly tangled his legs again with the woman in front of him. He kissed her neck softly, enjoying the feeling. He could stay like this forever.

Apparently the girls thought the same thing, accepting the lazy morning and taking their time in bed. The girls were talkative, enjoying their time together, but inevitably the talk about their new relationship would surface. It was new and exciting, but it was still different than anything any of them ever had.

“I want to take my time before I ask Jay and Carlos out.” Ben decided

“Are you sure?” Asked Mal the morning after, Evie still laying in between them in bed “Then we will wait too.”

Ben was tracing light patterns on Evie with his fingers “You four had history before, you should talk to them without me first.”

Mal reached for his hand, letting them lay on top of Evie’s belly. “This was _your_ idea, I will wait.”

“I want some time, Mal, to think about stuff. I need to move slow, you don’t. I don’t mind you getting a head start.”

“You really won’t mind?”

He opened his mouth, closed, and opened again. “I might get jealous. But this is something I will have to deal anyways, I can’t change the fact that you have history together. You have to talk about that history with them before we can do anything, and I need some time.”

Mal didn’t seem satisfied. “What do you think, Evie?”

She seemed startled. “I don’t want to intrude.”

Mal rolled her eyes. “Don’t be silly, we are dating you too, aren’t we?”

Ben felt his heart a bit warmer as a smile slip on Evie’s lips. “Well… Ben is right. We dated for _years_ without any sign of communication, we have to deal with that, and this is something we have to do between us four. If Ben is fine with that, I think is best If we do it sooner rather than latter.”

Mal moved herself closer to Evie, arms reaching for Ben. “It seems wrong to leave you out.”

“Let’s compromise.” proposed Ben “You guys wait a few days before talking so I can enjoy our new dynamic, is this ok?

It was easier said then done. The three of them were extremely busy people and Evie still had Doug. They had to make time during alone meetings and dinner-dates. It was only thanks to Evie’s sense of control that her and Ben got any work done, as she managed to pull themselves out of making out for ages against the meeting room’s door. She even found time to sneak a few nights and sleep curled against them again.

Ben took his time to think, too. He knew he loved them both, but actually acting on it was very different. It was weird knowing you could pull your fiancee’s best friend by the waist and kiss her until neither of you could breath, and it was weird to see your fiancee do it too. But as he woke with blue hair covering his face and hands intertwined with a ringed hand he felt his heart melt and warm his insides in such a way he was afraid he would explode. He wondered how would people ever _not_ call this true love.

When Mal and Evie called a “meeting” with Jay and Carlos, Ben knew better than to wait up. He was not unused to the idea of sleeping alone, and he had a lot of paperwork to do anyways, so he didn’t expect anything out of the ordinary. It was just another night.

His anxiety, however, had a different idea, and as the hours ticked by, it got harder to ignore the part of him that _was_ feeling left behind.

So that’s how he ended up on Uma’s door with a bag of Chinese takeout at almost midnight. She opened the door in sweat pants and a shirt that was most likely Gil’s. At least she wasn’t half naked this time. “Ben? Did I forgot a meeting again?” She frowned

He suddenly felt very, very ridiculous. “No I… I brought take out?”

He must’ve looked as shitty as he felt, because she turned her back to yell “Boys, I need to take care of something, don’t wait up.”, before closing the door behind her. “Your house?”

He nodded and let her take the lead. The night was a comfortable kind of chilly and they made no effort of rushing. Uma took her time to start talking and honestly, Ben appreciated it.

“So, where’s your little girlfriend?”

“My _girlfriends_ are currently on a date with their most-likelly future boyfriends”

Uma raised a single eyebrow, looking at him as if it was the first time “You talked to Mal. I take it went well.”

“Well, yes.”

“So how come you’re not with the four of them doing the freakiest cuddle pile or something?”

Ben avoided her eyes. “I wanted time and they needed to solve things within themselves first.”

“So, you stayed home for this one?”

They arrived on the castle, and Uma understood the silence look he gave her. The last thing he needed was some sort of weird, misjudged sex-scandal now. They reached his rooms without any problem, however, and she resumed the conversation as soon as he closed the door.

“So, I assume this is your idea of a little date for yourself. I must admit, I’m disappointed, I expected flowers.”

Ben stopped taking the boxes of takeout from out of the bag, looking her in the eyes. “Oh, no Uma. I don’t want to ask you out just because I don’t want to be alone. I wanted a friend tonight, if that’s ok.”

Uma froze in place “Oh.”

He frowned a little “What?”

She shook her head a little “You’re stupidly prince charming, sometimes”. Her tone was mockery, but her eyes were soft as she sat on the chair in front of him and grabbed a pair of chopsticks.

“Someone here has to be” he said back, but blushed anyways.

“So tell me, little king, you want what kind of help? Because I must tell you I _suck_ with tears.”

He laughed. “No, no tears, I just need a distraction. Tell me, I heard Harry got into a fight?”

She smirked, taking a bite of her food before speaking. They ate casually, and Ben felt the weight on his shoulders a little lighter.

“So, spill the gossip, you, Mal and Evie are a thing now?” she asked, when the food was already over and they were a little too sleepy.

“Yeah, I guess we are.”

“So, how are you dealing? Is everything you thought it would be?”

Ben crooked his head. “It’s… it’s kind of better, actually. I was terrified I was making the wrong choice by telling Mal, what if I was wrong and true love _coul_ _d_ _n’t_ be done like this? But I wasn’t. I feel on a fairy tale every time I look at them. But...”

“But she has history with the other three and you’re the newbie. Must suck.”

“Yes, it does _suck_. We will deal, though. I think it’ll be worth it.”

She smiles at him and it doesn’t quite feel like the same smiles she gave him during the night. He doesn’t have time to register it, though, because she yawns right after it.

“Maybe I should head home.”

“Or you can stay.” He suggest “It’s late. I can take the couch if you want.”

She smiled at him, rolling her eyes “We can share the bed, little king, I’m pretty sure it’s big enough for both us of”

Ben blushed a little under her gaze, but he was tired and really didn’t want to sleep alone tonight. Her weight next to him in bed felt almost familiar, and he was asleep before he could think too much about it.

* * *

  
  


“Ben? Are you awake?”

Ben barely opened his eyes at the sound of Mal’s voice. She sounded so far, what was she doing out of bed so soon? He snuggled closer to the warm by his side, seeing blue in the hair he was getting closer to. Huh, Evie’s hair looked lighter.

“Do you want to get breakfast with us?”

This was Evie’s voice. She also sounded far away. How could she sound so far away If she was in bed with him?

Something clicked on his mind as the person he was hugging sat on the bed “You guys always wake up this early?”

Ben blushed, looking at his girlfriends, but they were both already gaping at Uma.

“Oh.” Said Mal “We didn’t you… had company.”

Uma rolled her eyes “Don’t get your panties in a twist, princess, we were just sleeping, nothing happened” She winked at Ben, before getting up shamelessly to the fact she was not wearing pants to sleep. “But I guess you three need to talk, so I’m gonna go. Call me next time you need someone to eat your food”

She put her pants on as Ben laughed softly. She walked towards the door, passing by the two girls before turning to look at Mal “Well, _you_ can call me anytime, princess”. She enjoyed the redness creeping in her face before letting herself out, closing the door behind her.

Mal took her time to stop staring at the door.

“So, you had a date too?” asked Evie carefully.

Ben scratched his head “No, I just wanted a friend over. She stayed because it was too late to walk home.”

“You could have… you know… kissed her or whatever” Mal added, sitting on the bed

“Oh, I know, but I meant what I said: I need to think, one girlfriend at a time and all that.” He stopped, before adding with a smile “You two are already too much trouble.”

They laughed, and Evie sat by Mal’s side. He watched as their hands met automatically on the bed.

“Are you ok?” Asked Evie

He pondered a little before answering firmly. “Yes, I’m ok now.”

“Do you… do you want to hear about the date?” asked Mal

He was silent for a second. He knew he could say _no_ and deal with things slower, but part of him was aching to know. He could see behind their worried faces that they were so _happy_ and he wanted to know everything about what made them happy. “Yes, of course I do”.

They beamed a little on their seats and Ben’s heart melted. Yeah, he was ok.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to write a comment please <3 it really help us fanfic writters to know you're enjoying this
> 
> you can follow me at las-lus.tumblr.com


	5. Carlos and Jay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! 
> 
> I've thought a lot about this chapter. I wanted it to be two, at first, one about Carlos and one about Jay, but I thought that Ben would never start dating one without the other. So I'll give them a little more focus on the next chapters
> 
> Enjoy!

If dating two people was hard, having each of them date another two (or three) was _harder_. Not in the way Ben thought it would be: his insecurities still sting from time to time, but mostly he was so absurdly happy about this arrangement he couldn’t really mind. It was hard because they had no _time_ – they were always busy and having alone time with any of them was increasingly harder.

It was almost Ben and Evie’s second month together (and _by the godmother_ maybe they should all decide on a collective date, forgetting anniversaries was about to get increasingly hard) when Ben was faced with how he was missing out.

His meeting had been called short because Jasmine needed to return to Agrabah earlier than expected, and he was heading to his bedroom, wondering If maybe Evie or Mal were free and interested in a nap when he saw a glimpse of purple hair crossing the corridors.

“Mal?” His voice echoed, trying to catch up to her

“Ben?” Her face light up “What are you doing here? Didn’t you have a big meeting with…”

She pulled a grimace, as she usually did when she forgot something she knew she, as a princess, should not. He laughed a little “Jasmine. Yes, but she had some trouble home. Are you free? I was hoping I could have some company”

“I can’t. I have a meeting with Jay. He wants to create a sports program for the VK’s, so they can focus all their energy on something.” She stopped, crooking her head before adding “Do you wanna come? It won’t be too boring, I promise.”

He pondered for a second. He could really use some extra sleep, but spending time with Jay was so hard nowadays he was up for anything. She smiled at him, offering her arm so they could trail along the halls of the castle to one of the meeting rooms. When they arrived, Ben opened the door, but let Mal get in first.

He didn’t think that Jay was expecting  just Mal t oday . 

As soon as she stepped inside, Jay took her by the arm, spinning her around so he could pull her closer, pressing his lips to her. Ben stared, blinking. Jay and Carlos had been avoiding any physical contact with the girls when he was around; not that he asked for it, but it was a nice sentiment: they were still learning what the rules were and it was good that they were taking it slow.

But this? This felt private. He could see the smile on Mal’s lips against Jay and half of his heart melted while the other got on fire. He expected the jealously to burst up again, but instead it was _yearning_. He wanted a space between them (well, not _literally_ between, but he wouldn’t complain). He wanted to tangle his hands on Jay’s hair and let himself be pulled by his kiss too. His mind half wandered to the idea of how they would look like together, would they all fit like a puzzle piece as Evie did?

Mal took a step back, blushing furiously. “Uh, Jay, Ben decided to come too.”

It was a weird look on Jay, embarrassed. “Ben, I’m sorry I...”

Ben brushed it off “It’s more than ok. She’s your girlfriend too.” The words tasted funny in his mouth, like the traces of a desert after finishing “I’m the one who should be sorry to intrude.”

“I’m not sure the king _can_ intrude, especially considering its _you_.” Laughed Jay, his eyes glowing in a way that made Ben finally blush.

The meeting brushed past Ben, and when he and Mal were getting ready to bed, he was still a little off.

“Are you ok?” asked Mal, slipping on her pajamas “Is it… is it because you saw Jay and I?”

He knew that look on her: it was the same look she use to give him when they started dating, when she thought he was giving up too much to be with her.

“Mal, I meant what I said: he is your boyfriend too.”

“I know, but… You don’t need to be ok with seeing us like that.”

He smiled at her, pulling her closer “But I _am_. I like that you’re happy, and I like that I’m not the only one that makes you happy. You deserve as much love in your life as you can get. And I _love_ being in love with Evie too.”

She smiled at him, but it was still a little broken “I can try to sleep over with you more often”

It was true that since their new arrangements he was getting used to sleeping alone again (which was really contradictory considering he had double the girlfriends he used to have), but he _got it_. He wouldn’t lie that he would enjoy having her in bed more often, but this wasn’t the solution he was aching for.

“Actually I… I’ve been thinking. I think I want to ask Jay and Carlos out.”

She beamed. “What, really?”

“Yeah, I’m still scared senseless, but I don’t think I will get more ready than this. Do you think they will say yes?”

She laughed at him, “They are just waiting for you to ask”

“In three days its our month-aniversary with Evie, what do you think we talk to her and invite the boys over for a movie?”

She laughed “Ben, you’re _way_ too cheesy if you think you can celebrate month-anniversaries _and_ have 4 partners. No one has that much time”

He laughed back “Well, a guy can dream.”

* * *

Having the four of them on his living room was more terrifying than he ever thought it could be. Mal was by his side on the love seat, but Jay, Evie and Carlos were by the sofa. They were talking loudly, arguing with movie to pick, and it was impossible for Ben to ignore that Carlos’s arms were over Evie and Jay ever so casually.

“What about you, Ben?” asked Carlos, turning to look at him with those impossible bright eyes.

Ben lost his train of thought. “What?”

They all laughed. “Would you rather watch an action movie or a romantic comedy?”

Ben swallowed. “Actually, can I talk to you first?”

Carlos frowned, but by his side Jay’s eyes glowed. “Yes, of course”.

Ben shifted so he would seat on the ottoman by the sofa, facing the trio. “I don’t want this to feel like I’m adding a condition, I’m perfectly happy with our arrangement if you want to stay that way. But I… I like both of you too. Actually, I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you, so… I’d love for we all to date, if you’d have me.”

He stared at them for a second, his anxiety obvious on his face. Jay rolled his eyes. “You worry to much” he said, before pulling Ben by the collar and kissing him.

Ben had never kissed a guy before. He wanted to, obviously, even before Jay and Carlos, but Auradon was too much of prude to allow kissing before dating and before Mal he only dated Audrey. His hands tangled on Jay’s hair and he moved himself to fit better on him. He shivered when Jay’s thumb trailed his jaw and let a small moan as he bit his lower lip. _By the godmother_ he was a good kisser.

His heart almost stopped when they broke apart and Jay _winked_ at him as if he knew he had stolen all of his breath.

Evie laughed softly from his side “He does that.”

Ben turned to Carlos, who looked as nervous as Ben felt. He appreciated that not every one of his dates was oozing confidence, it made him feel less of a dork. Ben crooked his head a little “Will you have me too?”

Carlos smiled softly. “Of course I will. I just… When the girls talked about your relationships I thought you didn’t _want_ to include us.”

Ben’s face fell “Oh, I’m sorry, Carlos. I needed time. Evie was... she felt _easier_ , you know?”

Carlos looked over at her, a softly smile on his lips. Evie had something about her that made falling for her just like breathing. There was no weight on it, no burdens, no hardness. It was good to know it was a universal experience. “Yeah, I do.”

Ben cupped Carlos head, kissing him softly, as if he was trying not to scare him away. It felt huge anyways, to kiss him, to kiss him by _their_ side. He pulled away a little, but Carlos pulled him back, kissing him stronger this time. There was no fear on this kiss, and he could no longer understand why he ever thought it had. He kissed back just as eagerly, his chest to small for his heart.

“So.” He said, finally pulling back, a smile on his lips “I’m saying… action movie.”

Next morning he woke up on the sofa. They pulled the ottoman closer to give them more space, as If they didn’t sleep on a pile anyways. Mal was by his side, as she always had been, as if nothing had changed. But Jay was right behind him, legs tangled on his, and Evie’s face was facing Mal’s their hands touching in front of them, or Carlos laying on Jay’s chest, hand reaching for Ben’s over the body between them. He could feel his heart bursting his chest.

Ben was right, they did all fit like a puzzle piece.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't forget to leave a comment <3 it really helps us fanfic writters and its the only way for us to know you're reading!
> 
> you can follow me at las-lus.tumblr.com if you'd like!
> 
> next chapter should be up by next friday, but if I delay it by one or two days don't worry, i'm starting an intensive course for college next week that should keep me a little busy.


	6. Harry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the small delay, college really has a way of eating all my time. Also, I'm not 100% satisfied with this chapter, sorry. The brigth side is that next chapter might be my favorite.
> 
> I want to thank so much all of you who are leaving me comments <3 it makes such a difference
> 
> Well, enjoy the chapter!

  
  


When Ben met Harry he was being kidnapped. Maybe he shouldn’t have thought about how _hot_ Harry was while being tied to a pole, but _whatever_ , he had a type, sue him. Falling for Mal had been the easiest thing he had ever done, and he could read Uma’s feelings on her eyes since they first met. Evie, Jay and Carlos had become his best friends in half a breath and, before he knew it, he was hanging on every tone of Carlos’ laughter.

With Harry Hook things were always harder.

Ben was getting used to dating four people. He had ordered a bigger bed on his bedroom and they still barely fit (which was honestly perfect because Ben could never get enough of this cuddle pile). Now they all had each other times was a _little_ easier to manage. They could have quality time together, even if Ben made sure to spend time with each of them on their own.

He had taken Carlos out last week, just the two of them, to watch a movie. Hanging with Carlos always felt like he was winning the most precious prize, and Ben knew he had to be very careful with it. The boy was so _soft_ he wondered how he handled living in the Isle, how much he had to act on a facade that didn’t fit him at all.

Carlos laughed at his choice for a movie, but didn’t complain as he snuggled closer. When they talked it was in whispers, as if anything too loud would break the perfect bubble they had around them. The only thing that stopped him from counting all his freckles that night was that Carlos was a great kisser.

Yesterday, Jay asked him out to hike on the enchanted forest. It felt silly, being this nervous about being asked out by his own boyfriend, but, if he was being honest, he was still nervous about calling him _boyfriend_. He never had a boyfriend before, let alone two.

“You seem to know a lot about those woods.” Commented Ben when Jay got hold of his hand before he tripped on a root. He took the opportunity to intertwine them.

Jay’s smile grew bigger “Oh yeah, me and Gil come here all the time.”

Ben laughed “Didn’t know you had so many dates with Gil.”

Jay automatically blushed. It was an endearing color on him and Ben resisted the urge to kiss his checks. “We don’t have dates. We hang.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“At least we hang, I don’t just stare at him over meetings as if they paint the stars”

“You mean like I look at you or any of our partners? I mean, I’m pretty sure we hang, _my love_.”

Jay pushed him with this shoulders, but held his hand tighter “You’re dumb. I mean Harry and Uma. When are you going to ask them?”

Ben blushed “I don’t know. I’m trying to go slow, you know?”

“You’re stalling. You have the chance to bang Harry Hook and you’re letting it slip through your fingers.”

“I don’t want to _bang_ him.”

He rolled his eyes “Whatever. Point is, people would’ve killed to be you in the isle.”

“Is this some repressed fantasy of yours?” laughed Ben

“I wouldn’t mind, but he is _not_ worth the trouble.”

“Besides, you got your eyes on his boyfriend.”

Jay blushed again and Ben beamed a little “Yeah, there’s that.”

Ben decided, when it was late at night and he was laying on Jays’s chest, with Carlos curled on his back, that he would ask Harry out. Maybe ask him to come over for a movie, or have dinner somewhere. It shouldn’t be too hard, right?

Except the next time he saw Harry Hook he was throwing a punch on Chad in the middle of the main street. Ben got there just on time, pulling him away before he did more damage.

“What the _fuck_?” asked Chad “You freak”

“Shut up.” said Ben, pulling Harry by the hand “You. You’re coming with me.”

He manage to pull Harry to an alley nearby, turning to him. “Do you have a good explanation for this?”

It was _not_ the first time Harry had gotten into a fight. The pirate was having more trouble adjusting than any VK he knew. Mostly it was with other kids from the isle who misbehaved, but Ben had to publicly apologize to princess Ariel last week because he had threaded her with his hook over a dinner table. It was tiring and made the counsel doubt his decision to open the borders – especially now that Uma was a constant present as his unofficial right hand.

“He was being an asshole.”

“Yeah, that’s what he _does_. It isn’t an excuse for you to punch him.”

“Its good enough for me.”

“You can’t just punch people, Harry!” Ben voice grew louder. He hardly even screamed and he could see the flicker on Harry’s eyes as he did so. “You’re _not_ in the Isle anymore, you...”

“You don’t think I fucking know?”

“Then act like it!”

“Of course you’re taking the little prince’s side.”

“I’m _not_ taking his side, I’m angry like you’re acting as if...”

“As if I rule this land? Don’t worry, your pretty crown is safe from me.”

Ben growled. “Why do you make things so _fucking hard_ , Hook?”

Swearing was not something he usually did. It was wildly bad seen in Auradon and he only got used to it because of his time with Uma. Uma saved no words and had no discretion to describe what she thought about the old men and woman in the Counsel. He felt a little bad about it, but he loved hearing her complain about his parents’ friends with such ease.

“If you wanted easy, little king, you shouldn’t have come anywhere _near_ us.”

He said it taking a step closer, and Ben knew what he meant. He meant him and Uma, the Vks, the Isle. It was not supposed to be easy with them, except right now, with his adrenaline high and Harry’s breath close to his, he felt that only _he_ was making things hard. The pirate’s action seemed to be taken purely to antagonize him and his attempts and he wanted to shout again at him, scream and make a stand.

Instead, he closed the gap, angrily and hungry, crashing their lips.

He never kissed anyone while mad, his first kisses had always been filled him promises and care and thought. Maybe the VK’s _were_ rubbing off on him.

Harry kissed him like he might kill him the next second and didn’t have any time to waste. He felt the hook touching his neck, shivering, but before he could pull away Harry pushed him to the closest wall. He was pinned, hook near his neck, lips swollen and part was his brain was in fight or flight mode.

The other part of his brain was _very_ into it, and that part pulled Harry closer by his shirts, hair, neck, waist. He was unafraid to use force, to scratch, to bite against the neck. It was never easy with Hook, it was a fight, a push and pull for control. It was hard, hard, _hard_.

When they pulled back, it took Ben a moment to remember where he was (in an alley in the middle of _Main Street)_. Harry didn’t take a step back, mouth still inches to his, breathing hard.

“Who knew you had this in you, little king.” said Harry.

Ben laughed, blushing slightly as they parted a little.

“For the record, Charming saw Uma with Gil and I. Called her a slut.”

Ben stiffed. The Beast on him would’ve punched him too. Maybe even the Price part on him. “Oh. You should’ve told me.”

“Would you have punched him too?” He seemed entertained by the idea

Ben rolled his eyes “There _are_ consequences to be have _besides_ violence, you know? Let’s just hope he doesn’t press charges against you.”

“Maybe dating the King could get me a _get out of jail_ free card?”

Ben blushed. “We kissed _once_ , I hardly call that dating.”

“I thought you lot only kissed _after_ dating and all that.”

“Well, I have been studying very closely the dating rituals of the Isle and I must say I find them much more sensible.”

“Lucky me, then. Why don’t I come over tonight then, maybe there are more _ways of the isle_ I can teach you.”

Ben tried his best not to blush, and instead pulled a smirk that he learned from Jay. It wasn’t perfect but it made him feel a little less stupid. “I would love that. Tonight at 10?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed it! Thank you so so much for all the comments, they are lovelly and make me the happiest! I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter too <3
> 
> next chapter should be up by sunday!


	7. Uma

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... Hey?
> 
> So yeah, I'm a whole ass month late. I'm sorry. College had started again and I was trying to get my live together and them bang covid-19 happens and I'm quarentined... But I wrote it! And I promisse you I WILL finish this fanfic, just... hang in there with me. Just one last chapter!
> 
> I wanted to thank so much everyone who comment on the last chapter! I will answer all of you but I'm curently using my phone data which kinda sucks. But be sure that your comment made me the happiest writter and made me find it in me to write something silly and romantic.
> 
> Maybe we all need silly and romatic right now.
> 
> Anyways! Enjoy the chapter!!

Ben was _terrified_ of asking Uma out. It had been more than a few months after he first kissed Evie at the kitchen table, and a couple more after he had started dating Jay and Carlos. He blamed on the fact that they were both very busy people. Uma had been promoted as his official hand and now they barely saw each other outside of work. But he made time to hang with his four partners and whatever the hell Harry was now, so he _knew_ he was full of shit.

“Hey, Uma? Can I talk to you?” asked Ben as the counsel meeting wrapped up.

Uma frowned, but nodded. He waited as the counsel members left the room, getting the papers around the table in a single pile.

“It’s nothing big, but we need to meet about the VK’s kids. Its almost end of the period and we should gather some data on their school performance.”

“Oh, yeah sure. When are you free?”

“Is tomorrow night ok with you?”

She crooked her head to advert his eyes. “I can’t. I have a date”

Ben lifted his eyebrows, a little surprised. “Oh, ok. I thought Harry and Gil were going camping with Jay this week.”

She looked at him, her eyes were enjoying his confusion, but her cheeks were slightly darker. “They are. Mal asked me.”

_Oh_ .

“I’m guessing by your face she didn’t tell you?” she said, staring at him

“No, she… I mean, she doesn’t have to. If we told each other about every date our group chat would be a whole mess.”

“Well, you better catch up to her anyways.” She winked at him “I have to go, but I’m free this Wednesday.”

She left him behind in the empty meeting room, feelings dancing on his chest. It had been a while since he felt jealousy burning on his chest, t a k ing him a moment to recognize  it , but surely enough it was there. He knew Mal had every right to ask Uma out  and part of him was happy the girls were getting around to their date. But still, the felling was there, annoying and angry.

It took him even longer to figure out that it wasn’t Mal he was jealous of: it was Uma. He was jealous because she said yes to someone else before she said yes to him, jealous that Mal was getting to kiss her before he did.

He drew a breath,  opening the door. There was nothing good to come out of going down that trail of thought. Besides, he never asked her out: if anything he should be mad at himself for stalling while still felling entitled to her time. 

When he reached his room, he was feeling better. The jealously was still there, nagging his insides, but he was calmer. He opened his door to find Mal and Carlos already inside, both dressed to bed.

“Hey! You’re late, Carlos almost ate your food” said Mal, looking over her book.

Carlos smiled guilty at him from the table, a box of takeout in front of him. Ben smiled softly. “It’s ok, I ate before the meeting, you can have my part.”

Carlos beamed “You’re my favorite boyfriend. Don’t let Jay hear it.”

He laughed, walking to peck his lips softly before dropping on the bed next to Mal.

“You look like shit, honey” she said, putting her book down

“Thanks. I love you too.”

She giggled, kissing  his cheek lightly. “No, really, what happened? Was the meeting  _that_ bad?”

“The meeting was ok, It’s just… Uma told me about your date. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for you, but...”

“But you wanted to ask her our first.” she completed

“Yes. It’s dumb, I know.”

“It’s dumb, but I get it. I actually waited for you to ask her out first, but honestly Ben, it was getting a little out of hand. You’re stalling.”

He growled. “I know. I just… She makes me  _so nervous_ .”

Carlos laughed “Yeah, that’s Uma’s thing, she is  _terrifying._ ”

Ben laughed too, “Well, you’re all a little terrifying, I should be used to it by now.”

He  went to bed with Carlos’ arm around him and Mal  spooned on his chest, but it took  him  a few  moments to fall asleep.  He knew what he had to do.

He called Evie for a favor as soon as they woke up, Carlos still half-asleep on his bed as Ben and Mal got dressed for the day. He asked for her to cover his meetings on Wednesday, and canceled his scheduled lunch with Cinderella. He then rushed to the VK’s dorms, hoping to still catch Uma on breakfast.

“Hey, little king, what do we own the honor?” she said, sipping a mug of coffee.

He froze for a second. Uma as dressing a simple white shirt and  aqua pants, seemed relaxed and comfortable in the  dinning hall .  It was somewhat unset t ling seeing the Captain looking like this, no brave facade on.  She still carried herself as royalty, and there was no mistake she  _could_ break your leg if she so intended, but she looked… calmer. By her mug was a newspaper, open carelessly on the table,  full of crumbles of what he knew was blueberry cupcake; her eyes were soft, still still sleepy and her smile was light on her lips.

She didn’t look like a girl who carried the life of her crew on her shoulder. She didn’t look like someone who had to chose whether to eat or to patch her wounds up. She just looked like a kid.

He was unbelievable proud of her.

“What? Do I have something on my face?” She asked, her hand trying to clean her mouth.

He chuckle, “No, you just… You look beautiful today.”

She frowned, but her smile was still on her lips. “Are you feeling  _ok_ , little king?”

He blushed softly “Yes, I… I wanted to ask you… I know you said were free for a meeting next  W ednesday, but I was wondering if…” He stuttered a little, feeling stupidly nervous as she eyed him. This was ridiculous, he had  _five_ partners, how could he be so nervous about one date? “I was wondering if you would like to go on a date with me.”

Her smiled  widened, a wicked light glowing on her eyes. “I thought you would never ask. Pick me up at 7?”

“Make it 5:30. Oh, wear comfortable clothing.”

He winked at her, trying to pretend he wasn’t dying inside, before turning back and walking away.  _Ok._ He had done the worse part, all that was missing was actually making sure that date went as he planned it.

His hands were sweating, as Evie was so  _kind_ to point out with a giggle, as he finished dressing up for his date.  He was dressed in a white simple shirt, but was wearing the blue and yellow pants Evie had designed for him, which matched his shoes nicely. 

“Thanks for covering up for me, honey” He said, looking at the mirror once more before turning to look at her.

“It’s no problem, Dug is taking care of the shop anyways.” She took a few steps towards him, touching his face lightly “You look handsome, stop worrying so much.”

He smiled at her, pulling her by the waist and kissing her.

They’ve been dating for months now and kissing her was as usual as kissing Mal was: he was used to the feel of her waist against his hands of the shape of her palms on his face. But the way her smile fitted against his lips always made his heart skip a beat anyways. Kissing Evie always felt like finding peace in the mist of a battlefield.

“I love you” He whispered against her mouth, as if it was the first time he ever said it.

She laughed. “I love you too, Ben. Now go get her before you’re late to your own date.”

He let go of her waist, smile bright on his lips and left the room to pick Uma up.

She was already waiting when he arrived, and he couldn’t hide his smile when he saw her. It was hard to resist the urge to tangle their hands or even pull her for a kiss: to the public he was still monogamously engaged to Mal and none of them had no intention of changing that anytime soon.

“So, where are you taking me, little king?” She said, smiling as he reached her.

“Its a secret. But I’m glad you’re wearing sensible shoes.”

She lifted an eyebrow as they started walking “I’m always wearing sensible shoes… But I must say I’m a little curious.”

“Good.”

They talked as he leaded her to the enchanted forest and ignored her pointed looks as he took her hand to guide her in the right path. Jay had showed him the trail a couple weeks ago on their dating trip with Carlos. It always amazed him how the boys who had moved to his kingdom so recently already knew more about it then he did.

“You know, I’m starting to think you’re going to kill me and sell my organs” She joked. Their hands were still intertwined. “I hope you know I _can_ beat you in hand to hand combat.”

His laugh echoed in the woods. “Trust me, I _know_. It’s kind of my thing, apparently.”

“Murdering people on the woods?”

He rolled his eyes. “People who can kick my ass.”

“Oh, don’t sell yourself short, I wouldn’t say yes to any date with whom can’t at least give me a little sweat on a fight.”

“You can turn into a giant octopus. I’m _pretty sure_ you could kill me without a second thought.”

“Well, _yes_ , but your dragon fiancee would give me hell about it.”

Ben laughed again, any weight left on his shoulders disappearing. He knew Uma, she’d been his best friend and right hand for what felt like ages now. suddenly, he felt very silly of being so nervous about asking her out.

“We are almost there.” He said after a couple steps, opening the way with his hands.

The floor under their shoes wasn’t earth anymore, it was sand. Beyond the trees they could both see the ocean glowing under the sunset. Jay, Carlos and Ben had laid on that sand a whole afternoon, sharing kisses and enjoying their few moments alone. Ben had fallen in love with the place: he never knew his kingdom had a beach this out of sight.

“It’s wonderful here” Uma whispered, letting go of his hand to take off her shoes without a second thought.

He watched as she stepped on the sand barefoot, a soft smile on her lips. “So, a night dive is the plan?”

“Oh, no.” He said, watching in delight as she crooked her head. He moved towards the end of the shore, where a boat was laying on the sand “I thought about what you said, about me being too much of Prince Charming. But, well… We’re dating enough villains, I think. Maybe you need a little Prince Charming.”

She blinked, the smile no longer on her lips “Is this...”

“It’s not the _same_ boat as Ariel and Eric used, of course. Besides, they were in a lake. But I thought...” He scratched the back of his head, the confidene completely gone. Had this been an _awful_ idea?

She stopped his train of thought, crossing the distance between them in two large steps and kissing him full on the mouth. He hesitated for about half a second in surprise, before pulling her by her waist and deepening the kiss. Something clicked in him, happiness bubbling in his chest. Uma kissed him softly like the small waves now crashing on the shore. He had a feeling it was a very rare kiss for her, one she saved for very selected situations.

“You’re _so stupid_ ” She said breaking apart the kiss

He laughed, the sound breaking any tension left around them even if he could still fell her breathing against his lips. “Does this mean you like it?”

She eyed him carefully “Yes. But if you say a word to this to _anyone_ I will murder you, dragon fiancee or not.”

He pecked her softly, the smile on his face felt like it would never go away. “Deal.”

They moved the boat to the water together, not caring about their wets pants and rowed further into the ocean. It was a quiet bay, almost entirely closed, making the pool of ocean calm and even. He had pulled a couple of glasses and a bottle of champagne from a box hidden under the seat, along with a few sandwiches Carlos had helped him make.

“I’m not gonna lie, Ben, you’ve surprised me”

“I wanted to make up for stalling so much. You’re the whole reason why I can make this possible and I still made you wait.”

“I wasn’t exactly waiting as much as I was flirting with your fiancee, so we’re fine.”

He laughed at that, enjoying the smirk on her lips as she took the glass to her lips.

“But.” She continued “There are _no_ fish singing, which is a little disappointing.”

Ben rolled his eyes, still smiling “Well, the whole _talking with fish_ thing is more your area them mine. Best I could do was _maybe_ a singing cup.”

She laughed at that, but the smile on her face was still soft “Well, maybe if we finish this bottle you can hear me singing a little.”

“Oh? So we _will_ have singing fish?”

She gaped at him splashing him with water as he laughed “You complete _asshole_.”

They did end up drinking the whole bottle, feet touching in front of them as they switched between talking softly and enjoying the quietude of the ocean during the night. The moon wasn’t full yet, and they had a nice view of the stars as the boat was left to float mindlessly through the water.

“You know you didn’t had to do it, right? I mean, I loved the gesture, but you didn’t have to.” She whispered, when it was already too late and the temperature was starting to drop.

He moved to her side, careful not to stir the boat to much. It was barely big enough for both of them, legs pressed against each other, and he threw around their shoulders a red cloak Evie had insisted he brought along.

“I know.” He whispered “It’s just… Before it all started, that day at the lake, you asked me if you thought this could be True Love. This is my answer. If Ariel and Eric were True Love, then… then this can be too.”

She let her hand fall to his shoulder. It fit comfortably there. “You’re too romantic for your own good, Little King.”

He chuckled at that. “So I’ve been told.”

He could fell her smile even without looking, and they stayed like that for a while before she lifted her head to kiss him again. “I’m not… I’m not _good_ at this” She whispered “But I… I think it too. The… The True Love shit. I agree.”

His chest tightened at her words, heart too big for his chest again.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! I really wanted to make this date special so it was reaaally hard for me to write it! Also, does it show that I have a crush on Uma the most? Sorry
> 
> Please leave a comment <3 it really makes my day and it's important for me to know you're reading. Its the easiest way to make an author love you.
> 
> Stay safe and if you need, stay home. Hope you're all right wherever you are. This too shall pass, i guess.


	8. Epilogue (And isn't it love?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I UH I DID IT  
> I HAVE SO MUCH TO DO BUT I DID IT
> 
> Look this fanfic will forever hold a special place in my heart because it might as well be the cheesiest thing I've ever wrote and that's saying something (check my works for more polyamory and softness). It's also really hard for me to finish my projects (stares at my 12 WIPs) so yeah I'm happy.
> 
> I wanna thank everyone who left kudos and comments, y'all made my 2020 a little less shitty and It really does means a alot to me. I will answer all of the comments, bare with me, but let this be a thank you: you're the reason this exists.
> 
> This is like 3 times longer than the other chapters, so enjoy <3
> 
> I hope this silliness has made your 2020 a little lighter too.

  
  


Ben was fighting against his sleep as he tried to read the eternally long sentences on his report. His eyelids were heavy and it didn’t help that Carlos was warm against his side on the sofa, leaning against him as he read a report of his own. He wanted to pull Carlos by the waist and sleep for 16 hours, waking up only when the meeting with  the ambassadors of  Arendelle was already over.

“We need a date” said Carlos, letting his papers fall onto his chest dramatically.

Ben laughed “I hate to break it to you, babe, but technicallythis is a date.”

“New relationship rule: no invitation to read boring economical reports together is considered a date, no matter how much snuggle is evolved.”

He chuckled. “Those are like, all of my dates with Evie, we might have to break up.”

“See, that’s the problem!”

Ben frowned, finally lowering his reports “You know it was a joke, right? It’s not our fault we are busy.”

Carlos rolled his eyes, untangling himself from Ben so he could sit facing him. “No, I mean, we need a date. All of us. A day with no worries, no meetings and no damn economical reports.”

Ben smiled “Like that day over the lake”

“ _Exactly._ We should organize another picnic, but this time officially a date. Uma and her boys, us five… _Oh_ , and Doug and his boyfriend! I can’t remember the last time I saw them.”

“they came over for that dinner we had.”

“Ben, that was last month.”

“Was it?”

“That’s what I’m saying. We need to relax. What about next Friday?”

Ben opened his phone, rolling to his agenda. He had a dinner arranged with his mother, but he could always reschedule that to Sunday, and a small meeting about the VK’s with Harry, Gil and Eve, which could honestly be just an email. That could work.

“I have a meeting on the morning I _can’t_ miss with Hades, but them I’m free. We could all meet at the lake by 11’?”

Carlos leaned in and pecked him “I’m already sending the idea on the group chat. Oh, Jay said he is coming home in 10 and _really hopes we are not working because he wants cuddles_.”

Ben smiled, pulling him to another kiss before giving up on his readings all together. When Jay opened the door a few minutes latter they fell easily over the bed, sleeping in what felt like seconds.

The group chat was an effective mean of communication and by next evening they already had everything planned. They divided the shores between them and all Ben had to do was bring the drinks, and he planned to buy them right after his meeting with Hades.

He woke up alone that morning, something he was becoming unused to. But Mal had slept over at Evie’s and Jay was at Gil’s and Carlos had an early meeting to tutors some troubled kids. Harry and Uma hardly ever slept over, something about personal space and heat. But that meant this morning he woke up alone to a bed that could fit five adults.

The meeting with Hades, however, took enough of his mind that he didn’t bothered being sad about waking up lonely. Hades had been in Auradon ever since the shield went down and, unlike so many adults, he decided to stay in the capital. At first he seemed most content to be able to hang with Mal, but having the an actual god of death just wandering around the city was unnerving to most citizens. Ben couldn’t exactly blame them: he was a little terrified of him too.

So Mal suggested he took part of one of the communities centers, teaching music on weekends to the VKs. It… worked better than expected. Kids were really interested in learning music and, even if Fairy God Mother would much rather they learned classical music instead of punk rock, it was undeniable that it worked to calm them down.

The group started relatively small, given that most kids were so terrified of Hades they wouldn’t even dare join, but it was growing fast, with some Non-VK kids joining the club. The complicated part was that those non-vks apparently had lied to their parents about joining, and said parents were about to become very, very angry when next weekend their kids showed up to perform in a public park with Hades himself.

“Can’t they just _not_ perform? Maybe they can work backstage and tell their parents Fairy Godmother told them to help.”

“The kids want to play, its part of their rebellious phase. It’s important, everyone needs that.”

Ben lifted an eye brown “I didn’t have a rebellious phase and I’m fine.”

Hades actually laughed at that, loud and thunderous against the fancy meeting room “Kid, you’re dating like, 10 VKs, you _are_ in your rebellious phase.”

Ben blushed, his brain short cutting. A thousands questions started to overlap on his mind: He _knew_? Had Mal told him or were they becoming sloppy with covering their tracks after so many months? Did he tell anyone else? Did anyone else knew? But all that came out of his mouth was “It isn’t a _phase_.”

Hades stopped his laughing, but still had a smile on his lips “You’re serious about it, then?”

Ben swelled. This somehow was worse than when Hades had corned him to scold him for not asking for his blessing about the engagement. “I… Yeah, I am. Also, It’s just 6, not 10.”

“Good. I knew there was a reason I liked you behind all of this… _poshness_ ”

“You… You aren’t going to tell me I’m… I don’t know… I’m making a mistake or breaking Mal’s heart or betraying her trust or...”

Hades rolled his eyes “I’m not boring. That girl is feisty, if she didn’t like what you all have arranged she would jump out. Besides, I’m a god, I’ve done weirder. I’ll save this trouble for _your_ parents, _King_.”

Ben growled, hiding his face in his hands. This talk was bad enough without him having to bring up his parents into this. Ben thought about this more than recommended. So far it was easy and simple to keep this under wraps: their dating was so unusual no one would suspect they were actually all sleeping together in the main room. He just had to deal with the guards, which wasn’t hard. But Hades was right, if he was serious about this there would be a moment where this wouldn’t be enough.

“I know. I try not to think about that. Did Mal tell you?”

“She didn’t have to, she always sucked at lying to me. Also, the kids in the band gossip a lot and they all live under the same roof one of your girlfriends, so...” They stayed in silence for a couple seconds before Hades took a breath “But as I was saying, rebellious phase. Those kids need to be able to perform without their parents complaining to fairy godmother I’m a bad influence.”

“Are you?”

“Of course, but I’m a _good_ bad influence _.”_

Ben rolled his eyes, but let the meeting float back to its place, glad to take the subject out of his dating live.

It took them a little more time than expected to find a way around this problem, so when the meeting ended he ran towards the closest market in hopes of buying the drinks as fast as possible. Maybe he wouldn’t be _that_ late. Unfortunately, as he let the building with two reusable bags filled with soda, wine and juice, someone stopped him.

“Ben!”

He turned on his heels, holding back a growl. Audrey was running towards him, sorrow on her face. This couldn’t be good. He and Audrey had talked a lot after she tried to take over his kingdom; he didn’t care any grunges (he wasn’t a hypocrite), but he also didn’t made any efforts to be the friends they once were when they were kids. They grew apart, those things happened, and their friendship was more distant now a days.

But on the last few days he got a couple of texts from her saying they needed to talk. He was honestly too busy to deal with drama right now, but he meant to answer her after today,

“Hi! Not to be rude, but I’m really late for something, is it urgent?”

She reached him and her smile was more sad than anything. “I… yes. I don’t… it will be quick, I think. I don’t even know if I _should_ tell you, but keeping this from you is just _wrong_ , but I…” She flashed her eyes to his hands, still holding two bags worth of drinks “Are you going to host a party? I haven’t heard anything about it.”

“I… Picnic. With the VKs, I mean.”

“Is Mal going to be there? Uma too?”

He frowned. Was this about _jealousy_ again? He thought Audrey had got past that. “Yes, of course they are. I’m sorry, I’m really late to the picnic, can we meet tomorrow? I’ll buy you coffee.”

He started to turn, but she held his wrist. “No! I mean… you should know before you… First you need to promise me you will listen, I know this might be hard to believe, but I...”

“Audrey, just tell me.”

“Mal is cheating on you.”

His brain shortcut “What?”

“I saw Mal and Uma kissing a few days ago. I didn’t know hot to...”

Ben started laughing. That was _it_? By the godmother, he was relieved. _Ok_ , so maybe they _were_ becoming sloppy with hiding it, but he could deal with Audrey.

She, however, looked very concerned, putting a hand on his arm “I know you have no reason to believe me, but I swear I’m not making this up, I wouldn’t! Not now, especially not when I know Uma is your right hand, but...”

Ben stopped her, taking a deep breath to control his laughter “I know.”

“I wouldn’t, you have to… wait.” He could see her brain trying to make sense of what he was saying “You… what?”

He smiled “Thank you for telling me, but I know they are seeing each other. So have I, actually. Been seeing her, I mean.”

“All _three of you_? What is this? Why would you… Chad told me he saw Uma and those pirate boys together, but I thought he was just being mean. Is that true too?”

Ben sighed “Why don’t you come with me? To the picnic, I mean. It might clear somethings up. But you have to promise not to tell _anyone_.”

She frowned, but nodded “I won’t, you have my word.”

He smiled, nodding for her to follow him. “Can you hold this? I need to text mal.”

She reached for the bag, but looked at him a little terrified “She isn’t going to be mad at me, right? I mean, I...”

“You’re right to tell me, if she _was_ cheating I would’ve liked to know. She won’t me mad” he gave her a reassuring smile “Besides, of everyone who could see them, I’m glad it was you.”

“You’re really _ok_ with that? I mean… is it...” She looked over her shoulder, lowering her voice “ _is it_ _a sex thing?”_

He felt his face warming up, glad to have a reason not to meet her eyes as he texted Mal. “No, it’s not a sex thing. But, yes, I’m ok with it.”

  
  


_Audrey saw you and Uma_

_I’m bringing her over so we can explain it better_ .

  
  


She replied only a few seconds latter:

_Shit. Is this why you’re late?_

_I’ll try to get Harry in his best behavior_

_Wish me luck_

  
  


He laughed at the text, blocking his phone and getting the bag from Audrey’s hand.

“Is this picnic a date?” her voice was slow, making pauses between every word. He could see her trying to wrap her mind around it.

“Yes.”

She glanced at the bags on his hands “That’s a lot of drinks.”

“It’s a lot of people.”

She nodded, avoiding his gaze. He took a deep breath.

“Look, this might be super weird to you, but… try to keep an open mind, ok? Think of it as a… cultural clash.”

They arrived shortly after and for a second Ben stopped breathing all together. They were sitting on the grass, the light crossing the tree leaves and hitting them with just enough clarity. They looked beautiful, in various stages of cuddling – feet popped in each other laps, leaning against backs, hands intertwined on the floor. Even Doug and his boyfriend, Oliver, were there, enjoying the amazing mess this picnic was. Mal was the first to see him, her smile widening and Ben was forgetting how to breath all over again.

“How many more people are you bringing into this relationship, babe?” Asked Jay as he they arrive

Audrey blushed furiously “I… I don’t…”

“He is just messing with you, pinky” laughed Uma, before turning to look at Ben “You’re late, Honey.”

The closest thing to a pet name Uma ever called him was _Little King_ , and this time it was drenched in sarcasm: she was doing it on purpose to pester Audrey. It still made him smile softly at her.

“Yeah, ran into some in some problems. I did bring your favorite juice.” He laid the bags on the center of the circle.

“You do make a compelling case, I might forgive you.”

Mal got up, untangling her hand from Evie’s, to peck Ben lightly before turning at Audrey. The girl looked more confused than ever.

“Ben told me you caught me and Uma kissing.” She said calmly, behind her back Uma smirked, lifting an eye brown in defiance. “You were right to tell him, but… I wasn’t cheating.”

“He told me… I’m sorry, is this a _date?”_

“Yes. Well. Not not all of us are dating each other but… yes.”

“Is this… normal at the isle?” She was measuring her words very carefully

The VKs looked at each other before Evie answered “sort of. We’re still figuring ourselves out, but the easy answer is yes: couples of three or more were really common.”

Audrey turned to Ben, who was still awkwardly on his feet a few steps behind Mal “Are you… You aren’t cursed right? Just checking.”

They actually laughed at that, which seemed to relax her shoulders. Ben crooked his head “No, I’m not, I just...”

“Have a _type_ ” finished Harry

Ben blushed furiously, pulling a grimace before turning to him “Yes. Thank you. I thought we had established that.”

“Yeah, but I like to see you blush about it.”

Audrey took a step back, opening her mouth a couple of times “I’m not going to say I understand it, but I’ll not tell anyone… I’ll leave you to… your date. We can talk next week.”

She smiled at them tentatively before turning to leave. She stopped middle movement, looking at Ben again “Just… don’t lose your chance of true love because of this, ok?”

She didn’t give him a chance to answer, turning her back to the group and leaving them behind.

“Well, that could’ve gone worse.” Said Doug, reaching for a small sandwich.

“It was better than Hades this morning” Ben said, still looking at the path Audrey had left.

“What did my father do?”

“Oh, he knows too, somehow. He was fine with it, I was just really awkward.”

“He _knows_?” said Mal, gaping.

“Apparently the kids on his band _gossip_.”

“Oh _no_ , we’re _gossip_.” murmured Evie, hiding her face on Carlo’s neck.

“Well, it’s not like the four of you were hiding back in the Isle.” said Uma “I mean, it was pretty obvious you had a thing going on. The VKs probably only have weird theories.”

Ben sat by Evie’s side, Mal dropping right next to him. He thought about what Hades had said, about his parents and how he was still king of this nation. “Well, nothing much we can do. I’ve been thinking about writting a law that allows marriage between more people before, you know, we went public about it, so that might be a good moment. The council is finally cooling of with the Villains being out anyways.”

He reached over and popped a grape into his mouth, but the place had gotten weirdly quiet. He looked over to see everyone staring at him with the same half smile on their lips.

“What?”

They exchanged glances. Even Oliver seemed in the weird inside joke going between them.

“Well, you kinda just proposed, baby.” Said Mal, frowning her nose a little, the smile still on her lips.

Ben blushed again, harder than when Hades had dropped that he knew and harder than when Audrey asked if it was a _sex thing_. “I… I didn’t!”

“You kinda did” Laughed Jay

“Gotta be honest, I was kinda hoping for the whole musical act you pulled with Mal” said Evie, a wicked smile on her lips

“I wasn’t proposing! Not that I… I mean I do… I didn’t mean to…” he growled, hiding his face on his hands “It’s too soon, I don’t want to rush things. That’s what I’m trying to say”

“Yeah, but you know. Yes.” Said Jay

“I wasn’t… wait what?”

“Well, like you said, it’s too soon. But when you do, yes.” agreed Carlos’s

Ben blinked at them. He hadn’t… Well, he thought about it, about _after_ , after he told his parents and after they grew up and he didn’t like any _afters_ that didn’t include them. But it was different than listening this, the _yes_ to the dancing question that was around them everyday. He remembered Hades asked him if he was serious about them. There was his answer, loud and clear and he very much liked the sound of it.

“I don’t do marriage” Corrected Harry, a smile of pure _bullshit_ as he looked over at Uma and Gil.

“Oh, you better do.” Said Uma, before blushing “I mean, Gil would want that, right?”

“I would.” Said Gil, laying his head on her shoulder “I mean, I never thought the three of us ever would, the isle and all. But I’d like that.”

“Are we all proposing today?” Laughed Doug nervously, looking over at Evie “Because if yes I might as well join.”

“What?”

Ben watched as Doug ran a hand to the back of his neck before he pulled a small box out of his pocket, getting on one knee in front of their girlfriend.

“I’ll leave the whole _musical thin_ _g_ for when Ben proposes to you, but… Well, we’ve talked about it before and... meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me and it lead to the most exciting and honestly _weirdest_ relationship I could ever wish for. I can’t imagine not being by your side, not working with you, not kissing you everyday. You put so much of yourself in everything you do, Evie, and it makes me fall in love all over again... And I figured, no place better to ask than surrounded by the people I know love you as much as I do. So, will you marry me?”

“Yes!” Evie screamed, high pitched and loud enough that half of the forest probably heard “Of course I do, yes! I love you.”

She kneeled by his side, pulling him by the jacket to kiss him forcefully, smile still on both of their lips, ring still on his hand. Ben smiled at them, his hands intertwining with Mal, feeling the cold of the ring.

“I have say, that was kinda cute.” Said Uma, Gil’s head still on her shoulder.

They broke apart laughing. Doug still clearly anxious despite the large smile on his lips “Oliver helped me pick the ring, I hope you like it. I was going to ask Mal, but...”

“But she is a shitty liar, yeah.” Laughed Evie, ignoring the offended _hey_ Mal let off and letting Doug put the ring on her finger. “It’s perfect. Thank you, Oliver.”

He smiled softly. “It was nothing, he has great taste, he just wanted someone to agree with him.”

“Show us the ring!” pressed Mal, letting go of Ben’s hand to get closer. He smiled at the girls and leaned back into Jay’s torso. “Oh, it _is_ perfect. Congratulations, I’m so happy for you.”

Evie beamed at her, kissing her softly, before she snapped her head upwards “Does this mean I can design my wedding dress now?”

“Don’t lie, baby, we all know you have _at least_ three planned already” Said Jay from ove

She blushed as they laughed. “Well, it doesn’t hut to be prepared, besides only one matches our color schemes.”

He laughed, kissing her again. The talk revolved around them for a while, congratulations and soft kisses and smiles before they decided to go back to eating, enjoying the light feeling around.

They ate loudly, their laughs and talks filling the forest, their bodies always touching someone, hands on the grass and legs over laps and heads on shoulders. It was weird; he remember having his first date with Mal by the same lake, it felt like ages ago. He loved it than, but he liked it better now.

“I say, race to the other side of the lake” said Gil, taking off his shirt and jumping on the water before anyone had time to think.

“Cheater! C’mon Harry, can’t let him win” shouted Jay back, struggling to take off his shows before he laced fingers with Harry and pulled him into the water

They all ended up on the water, one way or the other, in various stages of undress. Ben stood behind, sitting over the lake with his feet on the water. He didn’t mean to, but watching them became a habit he didn’t had in him to get rid off.

“I know that look, little king” Said Uma, getting out of the water to sit next to him “you had it last time we were here.”

Ben laughed softly, leaning back on his hands “Last time I was more troubled.”

“True.” She crooked her head, leaning back to look at him, letting her hand lay on top of his “But it worked out, right? We’re all together, you don’t have to look troubled anyone”

“I mean, getting the council to agree to the marriage will be a pain, the _bureaucracy_ of having a royal family that big alone will take us _ages_ even we face no backlash, which, lets be honest, it’s impossible.”

“Oh, c’mon, we’ve dealt with worse. Rumor has it you had two all-powerful witches who can turn into giant beasts trying to steal your kingdom from you. And you’re still king.”

“I seem to recall both of them ended with a high position within the castle _and_ are both sleeping with the king, so… I’d say I handled it quite poorly.”

She laughed. He loved when she laughed like that, carelessly, head back, blue braids moving like waves under her.

“I’d say you handed that _greatly_. But I mean it, we can deal with the council. You, Mal and I are a pretty though team, we will figure things out. And I don’t mind taking it slow, you know? Neither do any of them.”

He stared at her for a few seconds before he closed the gap between them, kissing her softly. She responded eagerly, leaning her weight on him, the coldness of her wet body touching him through the shirt.

“I love you” he said when they broke apart.

“I love you too.” Her voice was soft for a second, like she so rarely let it be in public, before she pulled back. “But if you ever propose to me with a big musical number I will say _no_ , just so you know.”

He laughed “Noted.”

She glanced at him again before slipping back into the water “Whenever you’re done admiring us get your ass over there.”

He nodded, letting his eyes wonder again to their little entourage just in time to see Uma swimming over to hug Mal from behind, dropping a kiss in the curve of her neck. Gil and Jay attempted to do something stupid that was most likely going to end in a kiss. Doug was in between Oliver and Evie, as she was trying to get the boys to stop doing whatever the hell they were doing (an empty attempt, because Harry had dared them to, so they would). They were all right under the sun, the light just low enough to frame them like a picture, their laughs loud enough for him to hear.

He was pretty sure his heart was bursting out of his chest. He wondered for a second how could anyone not think this was True Love, the kind of love that break curses, lift spells and defeated evil. He had nothing to worry about: if the old tales his parents told him were anything to go by, True Love always won by the end.

He smiled before taking his shirt off and jumping inside the water, swimming towards them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh this was VERY CHEESY. I might (MIGHT) write the mal/uma date because CAN YOU IMAGINE THEIR DATE???? Honestly it was so hard focusing on Ben's POV because, yeah, i love him to death, but I'm in love with all of those kids.  
> Anyways, if you enjoyed it please leave a comment, it means the world to me, and thank you very much for reading this through the end!  
> You can follow me at las-lus.tumblr.com if you want!


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